Robots in Cold Chain Logistics: Automation at Sub-Zero Temperatures

As consumer quality expectations for fresh food and pharmaceutical reliability continue to rise, cold chain logistics has emerged as a critical component of global supply chains. Ensuring temperature-sensitive products are stored and transported under strict conditions is particularly challenging to maintain quality and meet industry standards. The introduction of robotics and automation solutions in cold chain operations is transforming this traditionally labour-intensive industry, improving operational efficiency, accuracy, and safety, even at sub-zero temperatures.

According to the UK Cold Chain Federation, the UK cold chain handles over 15 million m³ of temperature-controlled storage, servicing thousands of food and pharmaceutical suppliers. As of 2023, over €1 billion was invested in automated cold storage solutions across Europe, with the UK among the top three adopters, highlighting the need for robotic systems to support and enhance cold storage operations. The efficiency and reliability benefits that robotics offers, alongside labour shortages and sustainability targets, are firmly behind the uptake of robotic automation and wider warehouse automation technologies.

What is Cold Chain Logistics?

Cold chain logistics refers to the management and handling of temperature-sensitive products through a supply chain that maintains a controlled environment from production to final consumption. This includes a combination of refrigerated production, storage, and distribution activities. The cold chain ensures perishable goods such as food, pharmaceutical products, and chemicals maintain their integrity, safety, and optimum shelf life.

Cold vs. Frozen Operations

Within cold chain logistics, it’s important to distinguish between cold and frozen operations, which have a mix of similar and differing criteria and standards to meet:

Cold Storage (Chilled)

Typically maintained between +2°C to +8°C, suitable for fresh fruits, vegetables, dairy, and certain pharmaceuticals like vaccines.

Frozen Storage

Operates at -18°C or lower, required for frozen foods, ice cream, meats, and some biotech products.

Operating at sub-zero temperatures poses unique challenges for automation and robotics, including equipment reliability, battery life, condensation issues, and worker safety in extreme conditions.

Industry Sectors Using Cold Chain Logistics

Several sectors in the UK and globally rely heavily on cold chain logistics:

Robotic Automation In The Food Industry | LAC Automations

Food & Beverage

Fresh produce
Dairy and meats
Frozen ready meals
Seafood and ice cream

Pharmaceutical & Biotech

Vaccines
Insulin
Clinical trial materials
Biologics and blood plasma

Retail & E-commerce

Grocery delivery services
Meal kit companies
Specialty food items

Chemical and Industrial

Specialty adhesives
Temperature-sensitive industrial materials

Types of Storage Solutions in Cold Chain Logistics

To maintain temperature integrity, cold chain operators can choose from several types of specialised cold storage facility systems, ideally suited for cold and frozen applications:

Refrigerated Warehouses: Facilities with large-scale refrigeration systems divided into temperature zones.

Walk-in Cold Rooms/Freezers: Common in smaller operations or at final distribution points.

Blast Freezers: Rapidly bring product temperatures to freezing.

Insulated Containers and Pallet Shippers: Used in transit to maintain temperatures.

Mobile Cold Storage Units: For temporary or remote applications.

Regardless of the chosen storage system, robotic systems offer a robust and reliable solution to automate part, or all of the logistics process for optimised efficiency, accuracy, and safety in temperature-controlled warehouses.

Types of Robots Used in Cold Chain Logistics

There are various forms of robotics that are widely used in cold chain logistics operations, each with distinctive benefits. The most common include:

Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs): Used for a wide range of intralogistics applications, order picking, and transporting cartons or bins from storage to packing stations. AMRs use cold-rated batteries (lithium-based) and LiDAR and camera-based navigation that functions in low-visibility or frosted environments, offering a compact footprint for high-density storage.

Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs): Manage the movement of pallets or totes between cold docks, staging areas, and cold rooms. With floor-guided or magnet-based navigation, AGVs are capable of operating at -25°C or lower, reducing the need for forklift drivers in harsh cold storage environments.

Robotic Picking Arms: Ideally suited to piece-picking for e-commerce, pharmaceuticals, or high-turnover SKUs in grocery. These collaborative robots use grippers or suction customised for chilled or frozen packaging. They are integrated with computer vision and artificial intelligence for item identification and function well in cold environments with condensation-resistant components.

Palletising/Depalletising Robots: Used to automate the process of stacking or unstacking crates, trays, or cartons. Palletisers feature heavy-duty and cold-hardened mechanical arms, offering 24/7 operation to support high-throughput fulfilment centres and cold storage warehouses.

Inspection and Monitoring Robots: Used for surveillance, environmental monitoring, and predictive maintenance. Equipped with thermal sensors, cameras, and environmental probes, inspection robots can navigate narrow aisles and high racking structures to collect valuable product data, enhancing warehouse control and reducing the risk of human exposure.

Examples of Industry Applications

Robotic automation is transforming cold chain operations across a range of industries. In the Food & Beverage sector, robotic palletising of frozen meats and the use of autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) to transport chilled goods to packing stations improve both efficiency and product handling. In Pharmaceuticals, robotic arms are used to pick individual doses, while automated guided vehicles (AGVs) manage the movement of temperature-sensitive items such as insulin and vaccine pallets under strict thermal control. The Retail & Grocery industry benefits from AMRs and robotic arms fulfilling online chilled food orders in micro-fulfilment centres, streamlining last-mile logistics. Meanwhile, Logistics 3PLs deploy automated storage and retrieval systems (AS/RS) with robotic cranes and shuttles for high-density frozen storage in fully automated cold chain warehouses. These robotic solutions offer precision, speed, and enhanced safety in temperature-critical environments.

Benefits of Using Robotics for Sub-Zero Operations

Integrating robotics for cold and frozen logistics applications offers far more than just productivity gains. These advanced robotics systems are engineered to overcome the unique challenges posed by sub-zero conditions where the use of manual labour becomes inefficient, risky, and costly. Whether it’s enhancing worker safety, improving inventory accuracy, or maximising energy usage, robotics delivers tangible advantages that directly support enhanced operational performance. Below are some of the most significant benefits driving the growth in robotics across cold storage warehouses:

Robotics for Primary Food Handling Tasks

Operational Continuity

Robots function consistently without fatigue, supporting 24/7 shifts and improving warehouse automation.

Inventory Accuracy

Integrates with WMS/ERP systems for real-time stock tracking and product integrity.

Space Optimisation

Enables high-density storage and effective use of actual space in temperature-controlled environments.

Worker Safety & Costs

Reduces the time human workers spend in extreme temperatures and lowers labour costs with minimal manual handling of repetitive tasks.

Energy Efficiency

Optimised movement of goods reduces door openings and cold air loss, as well as robots requiring minimal lighting to carry out tasks.

Remote Monitoring & Diagnostics

Minimises downtime through predictive maintenance.

Mechanical Handling

Reduces the risk of contamination, particularly important for food and pharmaceutical products.

Compliance & Traceability

Advanced sensors and warehouse management systems ensure compliance with cold chain regulations.

Other Automation Technology Used in Cold Storage

While robotics offers dedicated solutions for processing, packaging, storing, and distribution of chilled and frozen goods, additional automation technologies are frequently integrated alongside robotics to provide a fully automated turnkey solution. Some of the most widely used technologies include:

Automated Storage and Retrieval Systems (AS/RS): Store and retrieve pallets or totes in high-bay temperature-controlled warehouses, operating efficiently in extreme conditions.

Smart Conveyor Systems with Sortation: Move chilled or frozen goods across zones with minimal human handling, supporting overall solutions for warehouse automation.

Environmental Monitoring Systems: Use RFID and advanced IoT sensors to provide real-time temperature and humidity tracking, improving warehouse managers’ visibility and ensuring quality.

How Robotics Is Transforming Cold Chain Logistics Across Industries

Across food, pharma, retail, and 3PL sectors, there is little doubt that robotics is revolutionising how temperature-sensitive products are stored and moved. Robotic automation provides an efficient and effective solution for the cold and frozen goods supply chain.

With increasing customer demand, regulatory pressure, and environmental challenges, robotics and automation technologies offer a scalable and sustainable way forward. By deploying precision Arctic robots for bespoke tasks to fully autonomous systems in cold storage facilities, the cold chain is becoming smarter, safer, and more efficient — even in the harshest sub-zero environments.